Report: Red Sox's Chris Sale Won't Undergo Tommy John Surgery for Elbow Injury

Boston Red Sox ace Chris Sale is not expected to undergo Tommy John surgery, though he has been bothered by an elbow injury early on in spring training, accord to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. 

Sale is not expected to be available for the start of the regular season after being diagnosed with the flu and pneumonia and going on the 15-day injured list right before the start of spring training. 

That turned out to be the start of problems for Sale, who had an MRI taken on his elbow on Monday when he complained of elbow soreness after throwing a bullpen session the previous day. 

Per MLB.com's Ian Browne, the Red Sox and Sale were waiting for a third opinion on his elbow after sending the MRI results to  Dr. James Andrews. 

Any physical problem with Sale will be cause for great concern because of his recent injury history. The seven-time All-Star has spent time on the injured list in each of the past two seasons; his 25 starts in 2019 were his fewest since becoming a full-time starter in 2012. 

Last season was the worst of Sale's career with a 4.40 ERA in 147.1 innings. His 1.5 home runs allowed per nine innings pitched ranked 66th out of 88 starters with at least 140 innings. The 30-year-old missed the final six weeks in 2019 with discomfort in his left elbow.

The Red Sox bet big on Sale anchoring their rotation when they signed him to a five-year, $145 million extension in March 2019 that runs through the 2024 season.

Boston's starting rotation lacks depth after letting Rick Porcello leave as a free agent and trading David Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of the Mookie Betts deal. 

The Red Sox could start the season with a rotation of Eduardo Rodriguez, Nathan Eovaldi, Martin Perez, Ryan Weber and Hector Velazquez.